§ Rule 5 (Irrelevance or Repetition).
§ MR. SPEAKEROrder, order! The hon. Member is not now addressing himself to the subject before the House. His observations are quite irrelevant.
§ MR. WILLIAM REDMONDI bow to your ruling, Sir; but I am glad to hear that Dublin Castle is irrelevant.
§ MR. SPEAKERThe hon. Member is altogether irrelevant, and I must call upon him to discontinue his speech.
§ Mr. REDMOND resumed his seat.
§ MR. ARTHUR O'CONNORsaid, he could not share in the opinion of soma of his hon. Friends that the debate on the Soudan was a sham fight, an empty form; for, no doubt, English Members on both sides, as well as the Government, were anxious that a direct answer should be given to the challenge thrown out by the Front Opposition Bench. At the same time, he felt bound to complain of the ruthless manner in which the Government dealt with the rights of private Members. Unfortunately, the Irish Members were now almost the only champions of those rights. He would remind the Prime Minister that the precedents quoted by him were drawn from a time when the constitution of Parliament was very much different from what it was now. The Irish Members would not be justified in allowing the Government to push aside the important Motion of his hon. Friend without remonstrance. He would, therefore, move, as an Amendment to the Motion of the Prime Minister, to insert, after the word "Motion," these words—"Except the Motion relating to the Royal 1186 Irish Constabulary (District Inspector Murphy)." They would, however, be satisfied if the Government promised to adjourn the debate on Thursday night at 11 o'clock, so that his hon. Friend's Motion could be brought forward.
§
Amendment proposed,
After the word "Motions," to insert the words "except the Motion relating to the Royal Irish Constabulary (District Inspector Murphy)."—[Mr. Arthur O'Connor.]
§ Question proposed, "That those words be there inserted."
§ MR. DEASYsupported the Amendment, and argued that the debate on the Vote of Censure was not of such importance as to take precedence of the other important Motions of private Members. He suggested that the Irish Members should be allowed by the Government to set down this Motion for Thursday night at 11 o'clock; and if they were not permitted to discuss the case of Inspector Murphy now, they would feel it their duty to enter into it more fully whenever they had an opportunity of doing so. Probably they would not be allowed to discuss any important matter until the Prince of Wales had been to Ireland. He might say that it would not add to the warmth of the reception the Prince would get there when it became known that, immediately after the Government had decided on this visit, they took the extreme course of preventing the Irish Members from ventilating their grievances in that House.